According to the Fund’s representation on the island, during his visit, which will last until next Wednesday, he will exchange with national authorities, tour the projects developed by UNFPA in Cuba and participate in the 2022 Cuba-Health International Convention, inaugurated this Monday.

The senior official has a history of more than 30 years of strategic leadership in the fields of medicine, public and reproductive health, social justice and philanthropy.

Her academic career began at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Columbia University School of Public Health.

From 2014 to 2016, Kanem represented UNFPA in the United Republic of Tanzania, and in July of that year she was appointed UNFPA Deputy Executive Director with responsibility for programmes.

In addition, she was the founding president of ELMA Philanthropies Inc., a private institution whose work primarily targets children and youth in Africa, and she held the position of senior associate of the Lloyd Best Institute of the West Indies.

She has a medical degree from Columbia University (New York) and a master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Washington (Seattle), specializing in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine. Likewise, she graduated with honors from Harvard University, where she studied History and Science.

Natalia Kanem is the fifth Executive Director of UNFPA since the Fund began operations in 1969.

(With information from Cubaminrex)

Speaking for the Caribbean Community (Caricom) was the representative from Jamaica who stated that the blockade limits the ability of the proud, independent Cuban people from conducting basic financial transactions internationally, emphasizing that the policy’s goal of forcing change in Cuba has only produced suffering for the population.

The representative said that the anachronistic blockade violates the United Nations Charter and repeated General Assembly votes reflect worldwide solidarity with Cuba, adding that Caricom hopes to see this vestige of the Cold War end.

The Association of Southeast Asian nations (ASEAN) was represented by a speaker from Singapore who expressed support for Cuba’s resolution. He applauded progress made in relations between Cuba and the United States, while noting that much remains to be done, most importantly, eliminating the blockade.

(Granma)

During the first three days of a high level meeting on the issue, Minister of Public Health, and Political Bureau member, Roberto Morales Ojeda, stated that the country is more than willing to help others, to share Cuba’s experience and accomplishments.

He renewed Cuba’s commitment to supporting worldwide, regional, and national responses to HIV/AIDS, stating that only integration, solidarity and cooperation can produce sustainable results, and confront common challenges in a globalized, unequal world.

“Health must take priority over any other material, technological or intellectual property consideration (…). It is not acceptable that cost or other selfish considerations limit universal access to treatment for persons with HIV/AIDS,” he emphasized.

Morales stated the country’s position regarding the adoption of a UN resolution committing UN member countries to undertake efforts to eliminate the disease by 2030, saying that Cuba joins the consensus in favor of such a document, but notes that concerns about persistent problems and challenges are not reflected with adequate clarity or emphasis in the draft.

Morales insisted that no national or international legislation, agreement, or policy should limit universal access to the best treatment available for human beings with the virus, which has led to the deaths of more than 34 million since 1981, and with which some 37 million are currently living.

Cuba’s Minister of Public Health emphasized the need for international cooperation in the struggle against HIV/AIDS; the availability of resources; and unconditional transfer of technology – under the leadership of the World Health Organization and the UN program.

(PL)

Chilean President Sebastian Piñera will speak in the morning, while the Dominican Republic’s Leonel Fernandez, Peru’s Ollanta Humala and Suriname’s Desire Bouterse will do so in the afternoon.

The long list of heads of state and government and foreign ministers obliged organizers to arrange night sessions. Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla will take the floor in the evening.

Other speakers will be the presidents or prime ministers of Cyprus, Tanzania, Iran, Ivory Coast, United Kingdom, Kenya, Poland, Turkey, Zimbabwe, Gabon, Croatia and Afghanistan.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff opened the annual UN General Assembly session, saying the international economic crisis is too dangerous to be administrated only by certain nations.

Rousseff also called for reforming the Security Council and asked for Palestine to be admitted as a member state of the United Nations.

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez also spoke out for Palestine being admitted as the 194th member of the UN, and said that “preventing it from doing so may seem to benefit Israel, but it would encourage terrorism and conflict.”

Fernandez also reiterated her country’s demand for sovereignty over the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands, which are currently occupied by Britain, and joined in the demand for Security Council reform.

Bolivian President Evo Morales demanded a re-founding of the UN, and criticized the fact that its resolutions are not respected, such as in the case of the global demand for the end of the U.S. blockade on Cuba.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon called attention to the continuous rise in food prices, and linked that issue with growing poverty and famine in the Horn of Africa.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos also stated that drugs and drug trafficking are a national security issue for his country.

And Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom urged the international community to make a genuine effort to defend their common environmental heritage for future generations.

U.S. President Barack Obama also took the floor on the first day of meetings. In his speech, he rejected the idea of UN membership for Palestine and stated that his country’s commitment to Israel security was “unshakable.”

(Prensa Latina)

U.S. aggressin was focused not only on preventing Cuban companies from buying computer parts and equipment, but also in preventing Cubans from surfing the Internet, especially the social networks.

In October 2010, the Twitter network admitted it had blocked the sending of cell phone text messages from Cuba to its platform.

Since April 2011, the Twitter network, which has more than 100 million active users around the world, prevented Cubans from using certain tools, saying they could not have access from a banned country.

In February of this year, the financial company Syniverse stopped paying cell phone roaming charges to the Cuban telecommunications company ETECSA, one of ETECSA’s main sources of income, as it is for similar companies around the world.

Explaining that its bank could not engage in transactions with Cuba, Syniverse now owes ETECSA 2.6 million USD.

The Cuban government, with huge international support since 1992, will ask the UN General Assembly for the 20th consecutive time to end the U.S. financial, commercial, and economic blockade against the country.

According to estimates, the total amount of losses caused by the US blockade to Cuba is 9.75 billion USD.

(Prensa Latina)